


More Than Desserts

by seasparks



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Annette is thirsty, Background Polyamorous Relationships, Baking, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Lysithea is a perfect wonderful gremlin child, Mercedes is also thirsty, Resippy, Teacher-Student Relationship, Trans Hubert von Vestra, aroace Lysithea von Ordelia, but only sort of, illegal for Annette to swear, illegal for Lysithea not to swear, oh right we should tag that it's an AU, this was supposed to be standalone but wow do we want to write more stuff in this AU now, we are the midas of hurt/comfort, we will put recipes in the chapter notes and nobody can stop us
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-11 05:41:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 16,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28309911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seasparks/pseuds/seasparks
Summary: Annette has a problem: her philosophy teacher is hot. What's worse, she's also interesting, sweet, and incredibly fun to be around, not to mention a little flirtatious. Is there something there? And more importantly, can they manage their trauma well enough to find out?
Relationships: Annette Fantine Dominic & Lysithea von Ordelia, Annette Fantine Dominic/Mercedes von Martritz, Edelgard von Hresvelg & Lysithea von Ordelia
Comments: 1
Kudos: 25





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [itsCaravel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/itsCaravel/gifts).



"It's a new year of school, and I'm gonna ace my classes~ Annie is so smart because she always passes~ So many things for me to learn, I really cannot wait~ And maybe I will meet a girl who wants to...uhh...be my mate? Ew."

Annette sang to herself as she skipped across campus, making up lyrics as she went. She was always even bubblier than usual at the start of a semester—quite an impressive feat for someone whose idea of 'moderation' involved only having _two_ desserts, and who was so excited about the concept of learning that it was her fourth year and she still hadn't declared a major yet. Everything was just so _interesting_ ; how could she ever choose?

She shuddered again at her latest improvised lyrics. She had talked to Lysithea a few times about her growing anxiety surrounding dating, but there was a difference between being lonely and making up a song about searching for a _mate_. It sounded like something that horrible purple-haired boy would say, and Annette didn't want to be associated with someone like that, however tenuously.

Annette's first class of the year was Advanced Philosophy Seminar, in cozy old Cethleann Hall. Or...wait, no, was it in Seiros Hall? "Let's see where you live, philosophy seminar!" she said to herself as she checked her phone, still chipper despite the minor setback. "Ah, there we go! Time for some philosophy~ Cause no one is the boss of me~ I'll answer things so saucily~ As long as I'm not lost-ly~" Her singing—and her inventive rhyming—picked back up as she turned around and headed to the classroom in Cichol Hall.

Thankfully, she had left her apartment far earlier than strictly necessary that morning, so she was still a few minutes early to class despite getting turned around on the way. To her surprise, she actually recognized most of the students in the classroom. In the back of the room sat Marianne, a shy girl she had seen in a few other philosophy courses, and next to her was a pink-haired girl chewing gum and scrolling through her phone. Annette suspected they were dating from how often she'd seen them meet up outside of Marianne's other philosophy classes. _Looks like she decided to just keep her girlfriend company_ in _class this time,_ Annette thought with a smile. Next to the pink-haired girl was—

"Am I seeing double? Do my eyes deceive me?" The student in question, a man with a variety of piercings sporting a smoking jacket lined with gold satin, had apparently noticed Annette in the door of the classroom. "Dear, sweet Marianne is right next to me, and yet, a Merry Anne has just entered the room!"

"Good morning, Claude," Annette giggled. She walked over to an empty desk at the front of the room and put her belongings down. "How was your summer?" She didn't know Claude well, but somehow the cheerful acting major found time to take almost as broad of a range of classes as Annette, and they'd had enough classes together to be on friendly terms with each other.

"It was a summer of adventure! Of thrill! Of heartbreak!" Claude responded dramatically, striking a series of increasingly-silly poses. "It all began when—"

"He got drunk the day before his 21st birthday and prank called _his own parents_ , then spent the rest of the summer grounded," the pink-haired girl interrupted, punctuating her sentence by loudly popping her gum.

"Hildaaaa," whined Claude, "I was getting to that part, I swear!" He turned back to Annette. "Anyway, what about your summer, O merry one? Throw any wild parties?"

Suddenly, someone new entered the conversation. "What's this I hear about wild parties?" they asked dreamily. _No, not just dreamily,_ she corrected herself. _Ethereally. Sublimely. Heavenly...ly._ Annette turned around, half-expecting to see a faerie or a spirit or some other sort of mystical creature, something that existed between worlds. She wouldn't have been surprised to see them floating a few feet in the air.

Contrary to her expectations, the person standing in the doorway ended up being just a normal human, but she wasn't disappointed at all. In fact, 'normal' hardly did her justice: she was beautiful, stunning, _radiant_. Her face was framed by blonde hair cut in a short bob, and sported a cheerful, inviting smile. Annette wanted to reach out and touch her hair; it just looked so soft, so smooth. In fact, everything about her looked soft: from her cheeks to her torso, she was all rich, full curves that could barely be contained even by her fairly modest shirt dress and the cable-knit cardigan she wore over it. Even the glasses on a cord around her neck—drawing Annette's eyes to some _particularly_ interesting curves—had a sense of softness to them. _I bet she'd look even hotter with those on,_ she swooned.

"Oh my, you look flushed! I hope you didn't have to run to get here on time?"

That ethereal voice drew Annette out of her reverie, and she immediately snapped her eyes back up to the newcomer's face. "N-no, I'm fine, ma'am! I mean, umm...hi, I-I'm Annie!" _Oh no, did she notice me staring at her? Well, no, she obviously noticed me staring at her, but did she notice_ where _I was staring at her? Maybe she'll sit next to me and we can talk later? Oh no, what if she thinks I'm an idiot and sits as far away from me as possible? Or what if she thinks I'm adorable and sits right behind me where I can't see her?_

The newcomer giggled. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Annie," she said as she moved to her spot. To Annette's surprise and horror, that spot was neither next to her, nor behind from her, nor far away from her; instead, it was at the very front of the classroom, in front of even Annette.

Annette had fallen for her _unfairly_ hot philosophy professor.

"In fact," the newcomer—the _professor_ , Annette reminded herself—continued, "it's a pleasure to meet all of you!" She picked up a piece of chalk, turned around— _don't stare at her butt, don't stare at her butt, I don't care how juicy it is or how thick her thighs must be, I am_ not _going to stare at my professor's butt_ , Annette thought as she ogled the woman's ass _—_ and wrote her name on the board in impossibly neat cursive. "I'm Mercedes Martritz, and I'm looking forward to teaching your advanced philosophy seminar this semester!"

The class started off with introductions, and Annette learned that, aside from herself, Marianne, Hilda, and Claude, there were only two other students in the class: Annette's only companion in the front row was a stony-faced brunette named Edelgard, and directly behind Edelgard sat a gloomy girl named Huberta.

By the time it was Annette's turn to introduce herself, she had calmed down and regained her usual, bubbly demeanor. "Hi everyone!" she began, having opted to go with the same introduction she always used, updated for the new school year. "I'm Annette Dominic, and I'm a fourth-year undeclared major. I'm looking forward to learning everything I can from you, professor!"

Mercedes giggled. It was the most beautiful thing Annette had heard in her life. "I'm sure I'll enjoy teaching you, Annie! But I'm not a professor yet, just a grad student."

"O-oh! Sorry, Mrs. Martritz!"

Another giggle. Annette thought she might die. "I'm not married, silly," Mercedes said, her voice still airy, her smile unchanged since the moment she entered the room. She held her hands out and wiggled her fingers. "See? No ring! But I would much prefer if you would all just call me Mercedes."

Claude's hand immediately shot up.

"Yes, Claude? Do you have a question?"

"Can we call you Mercie?"

"Not if you expect any!" Mercedes replied cheerfully and smiled even wider.

A chill ran down Annette's spine as the thought of Mercedes being _merciless_ with her popped into her head, unbidden.

"Oh dear, is it too chilly in here? I knew I shouldn't have worn this silly thing," Mercedes said, starting to shrug out of her cardigan.

"N-no, it's fine!" Annette blurted out. If she caught a glimpse of Mercedes' bare shoulders, she _knew_ she would die. Besides which, the temperature really was fine. It was hot outside, and the classroom was a welcome reprieve.

Thankfully, the rest of the class proceeded without incident, sparing Annette's life for another day. Still, she worried about how she was going to handle this class. It only met twice a week, on Mondays and Thursdays, as opposed to three times like most other classes, but even so... _dangit, Annie, why'd you have to go and get a crush on your hot teacher like a big ol' bozo?_

Annette left the building and started off toward her next class, the spring in her step gone as she considered all the ways her crush on Mercedes could come back to bite her. _Just like I wish Mercedes would bite—wait, no! Bad Annie!_

She was still lost in thought as she felt a sudden tap on her shoulder. She jumped and turned to see Claude, a mischievous grin on his face.

"Sooo..." he began. "I noticed you... _noticing_ Mercie in there." He waggled his eyebrows in case it wasn't clear exactly what he meant by ' _noticing_ '.

"D-don't you dare tell anyone, Claude!" she squeaked back at him. She knew she was blushing too hard to credibly deny anything. "And don't call her that!"

"Relax, Annie. I'm a gentleman," he said with a wink and a tug on his smoking jacket, "and a true gentleman would never betray a lady's confidence."

"Yes, but _you_ might," Annette shot back, sticking her tongue out.

Claude clutched his chest melodramatically. "Milady! You wound me! I would defend my honor, but alas, I hear the stage calling to me! Fare thee well!"

Annette giggled and waved goodbye to Claude as he jogged off to acting classes. As she continued walking, she felt a little lighter than before. Somehow, Claude's banter always cheered her up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [extremely Huberta voice] if my lady wishes to have a big tiddy goth gf, I am more than happy to oblige.


	2. Chapter 2

After her last class on Wednesday, Annette got back to her apartment, dropped her things unceremoniously on the floor, and staggered over to the couch, where she immediately flopped down and let out a loud groan.

Lysithea looked up from the textbook she was reading. "Long day?"

"The _longest_ ," Annette replied. "Remember what I said about my philosophy seminar teacher?"

"The one with big milf energy? Yeah, how could I forget? You wouldn't shut up about her on Monday."

"Lysithea!!" gasped Annette, scandalized. "I did _not_ call her a...a _milb_."

"Of course you didn't! That's not even a thing!"

"Yes it is! It's an acronym for Mother I'd Like to, um, Bang!"

Lysithea rolled her eyes fondly. "That's not the last word! The last word is _'fuck'._ "

Annette crossed her arms, refusing to give in. "Either way, I didn't call her that!"

"You may as well have! What did you say, exactly? Something about looking like she had a big brioche under her dress with two muffins on top?"

Annette's face was heating up so much she worried the couch would catch on fire. "N-no I didn't...?"

"Oh?" Lysithea's eyes had a glint in them, like a cat toying with a cornered mouse.

"I-it was...two really big dinner rolls," Annette mumbled. "Not muffins."

"Oh, my mistake. That's _completely_ different. I suppose I'm misremembering you calling her ass _juicy_ , too?"

"No..." Annette admitted.

Lysithea grinned triumphantly. "So, what were you saying about your milfy philosophy teacher?"

"Sh-she's not—" Annette sputtered, then took a deep breath to calm herself. "A-anyway, um. I had Abstract Algebra III today. And she's? A teaching assistant for it?? Help???" She started to hyperventilate.

With her best friend suddenly on the verge of a panic attack, Lysithea immediately switched gears. "Deep breaths, Annie," she said calmly. "Look at me, focus on me, okay? I want you to breathe in," she waited for a count of four, "and out," followed by another count of four. "Good. Now again. Follow my lead."

Lysithea walked Annette through the breathing exercise until she seemed to have fully calmed down. They'd gone through this before, even prior to living together, so they both knew the routine by now.

"Th-thanks, Lys," said Annette. She sat up, and Lysithea took a seat next to her. "You're a great friend—"

"Damn right I am!" Lysithea interjected.

"—and I'm sorry you keep having to deal with me panicking over nothing."

Lysithea narrowed her eyes. "No. Stop. Shut up. If it's enough to get you to panic, no matter how dumb you _think_ it is, it's not nothing. So, what's got you so worked up about your hot teacher-slash-TA?"

"I...I don't really know," Annette admitted. "I don't usually fall for people so fast, y'know? Heck, I usually don't fall for people at all, but she's just...really nice, and pretty, and being around her feels like, I dunno, curling up under a soft blanket and drinking some warm milk."

"I'll _bet_ you want to curl up under her soft blanket and drink her warm milk," Lysithea teased, not willing to pass up on the opening Annette had just handed her.

The look on Annette's face was priceless. "What!!" she shouted.

"Or maybe you want her to put a brioche in _your_ oven."

" _What!!!_ "

"I'm not hearing you deny it~"

Instead of dignifying the teasing with a reply, Annette grabbed a pillow from the couch and _thwacked_ her gremlin of a housemate upside the head with it. She couldn't stay mad for long, though, and she broke down in a fit of giggles, with Lysithea joining in soon after.

Once they settled back down, Lysithea spoke up. "All teasing aside...Annie, all you have to do is make it through the semester and tell her how you feel once your final grades are in. She'll just be another student by then, right?"

Annette nodded enthusiastically; the possibility of just waiting hadn't even occurred to her. "Yeah, you're right! How are you so good at this?"

"Well, weirdly enough, you're not the first one I've had to give this sort of advice."

"What? No way!" Annette leaned forward, eager to hear more.

Lysithea smirked, happy that her friend's usual whimsical energy was returning. "I've told you I have a cousin who goes here, right?" Annette nodded. "Well, she was in basically the same situation last semester: she had a super hot TA and freaked out about it. Honestly, it was really sweet."

"Did she take your advice? What happened?"

"Of course she did," Lysithea said smugly. "And it worked out great." She got a faraway look in her eyes for a second, and her expression gradually turned into a frown. "Almost _too_ great..."

"Too great? How does that happen?" asked Annette, confused.

"I visited cousin El over the summer, and the hot TA was there with her."

"No way! That's so cute!"

"Yeah, sure. Cute." Lysithea shuddered at the recollection. "It's a lot less cute when the guest room is right next to theirs and the walls are paper-thin." She cleared her throat and continued in what Annette assumed was a mocking impression of each woman's voice, "'Ooh, Byleth, do me harder!' 'I want you more than your poor cousin wants a peaceful night's sleep, Edelgard!'"

Annette's ears perked up at the familiar name. "Wait, isn't your cousin's name El?"

"Yeah," Lysithea confirmed, "but it's just a nickname the family uses. Her full name is Edelgard."

"Huh, what a coincidence! There's an Edelgard in my philosophy class, too."

Lysithea's face went pale. "Yeah, that's...that's probably her, alright."

"No way!" Annette grinned at her good fortune. "How come you never introduced us?"

Lysithea quickly looked away. "Reasons! Very good ones! It's family stuff, you wouldn't understand." A split second later, she realized what she had just said and looked back at Annette in horror. "Oh fuck, shit, no, Annie, I don't mean because of your dad, it's just—"

"It's okay, Lys, I know you didn't," Annette reassured her. "I didn't even think about it like that 'til you mentioned it. What I'm more interested in is asking your cousin for advice, too..."

"Ohhh no you don't!" Lysithea snapped back, earning a laugh from Annette.

From there, the conversation quickly turned from Annette's current woes to safer topics. When she went to bed, she couldn't even remember why she was so anxious. Whatever Thursday had to bring, she was sure she could handle it.

* * *

Annette hadn't handled it at all.

Nothing _happened_ , really. Thursday's class had been a broad overview of what the course would cover, as well as an assessment of the class's background knowledge. She didn't slip up again or say anything awkward, but the whole time, she could feel herself focusing not on the material, but on her teacher. The way her giggle made Annette's skin tingle; the way her dress (another shirt dress, this one with a pattern of various cartoony baked goods on it) showed off her luscious curves; the way her glasses would slide down her nose while she was reading a passage to the class; the way she would absentmindedly, almost lazily reach up to push them back, sometimes several times per passage.

Annette's thirst for knowledge hadn't gone away; it had just turned into a different kind of thirst, for a different kind of knowledge.

"What am I going to do?" she ranted back in her apartment.

"Mercedes, I thought," quipped Lysithea.

"No, I don't care about that!" Lysithea raised an eyebrow skeptically, but let Annette continue. "I mean my class! I'm supposed to be _learning_ things! About _philosophy_!" she hastily added.

"I'm sure you'll figure something out," Lysithea said as soothingly as she could manage. "Besides, it's only one class. Even I know it's not that big of a deal."

Annette wasn't reassured, but she let the topic drop. After all, it was almost Friday, and she had been looking forward to this Friday ever since she finalized her registration almost six months ago.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it is a felony for annie to say 'fuck' and a misdemeanor for her to say any other swear


	3. Chapter 3

To Annette, any day she could learn something was special, but Fridays this semester were super, _extra_ special on top of that.

"Oh, this mountain of sweets, and treats that I long to eats~ Oh, to make and bake a cake with crumbs and yums~" she sang to herself as she skipped across campus to what was sure to be her favorite class ever: Intermediate and Advanced Baking Techniques for the Home Baker. Or as it was known more informally on campus: the dessert course.

Annette was already a decent amateur chef, even after adjusting for Lysithea's habit of heaping praise on anyone willing to bake sweets for her. Even so, she knew there was limitless room for her to improve, so when she learned that the once-every-other-year class was going to be offered in the fall semester, she leapt on the opportunity to register for it. She even kept her Fridays otherwise free of classes, treating it as a sort of reward for making it through the week. Her course load kept getting more difficult, after all, so she wanted to make sure she gave herself time to unwind.

If anything could get her back on track after her train wreck of a first week, this was it.

As was the norm when she was excited about something, Annette showed up early to the dessert course. In fact, it looked like she was the first one there. The room was set up with several workstations, each one a small countertop with its own sink, oven, induction burner, and assortment of kitchen utensils. Annette walked directly to the workstation in the center of the front row and idly wondered if she'd know anyone else in the course. Students would be paired up two to a workstation; maybe Edelgard would be there and they could get to know each other! She still didn't know why Lysithea was so cagey about anyone meeting her cousin, but Annette still wanted to pick her brain for dating advice, and this would be a great opportunity for it.

Almost fifteen minutes later, Annette was thrilled to see Edelgard walk into the room. Unfortunately, she was followed by a woman with a vacant expression on her face who Annette assumed was the girlfriend Lysithea had mentioned. They did end up picking a workstation next to hers, but she would have felt awkward doing more than waving in greeting, so she left it at that.

Over the next five minutes, a few more students trickled in, though no one else that Annette recognized had shown up yet. She decided to keep herself busy taking inventory of the tools provided at her workstation. To her surprise, everything was in pretty decent condition; to her _great_ surprise, this included the non-stick cookware in the cabinet next to the oven. She was so busy marveling at its condition that she didn't hear a breathy voice call her name from the door, nor did she hear its owner's approach.

"Annie! What a pleasant surprise! Would you like to be partners? It looks like the only other person I know here is already partnered up."

"Aaahh!!" Annette shrieked and jumped at the sudden interruption. She almost shrieked again when she saw Mercedes standing next to her with a smile that looked somehow even cheerier than usual. "O-oh! Prof—I mean, M-Mercedes! Hello! What are you doing here?"

"Learning to bake, silly, same as you!" Mercedes took a half step forward, then paused. "How would you like a hug?"

 _This is it,_ Annette thought. _This is how I die. Death by lesbian overload. Sorry, Lys, it's been nice knowing you._ Out loud, she nodded her head vigorously and sputtered, "Y-yes! Hugs are n-nice!"

"Yay!" cheered Mercedes, then immediately scooped Annette up into a hug, pressing her up against the curves she had previously only admired from afar. She had to pour all her remaining focus into attempting not to make any embarrassing or inappropriate sounds, and even with that, she was afraid she may have quietly whimpered once or twice.

Eventually, after far too long yet nowhere near long enough, Mercedes let go. Annette could still feel her face getting hotter, though, and her breathing had become fast and shallow. Her last conscious thoughts were, _Not now_ , and, _She smells like lavender and cloves,_ and then the darkness gnawing at the edges of her vision swallowed the world whole.

* * *

Annette woke in an unfamiliar room, propped up in a half-sitting, half-reclining position in a thoroughly uncomfortable bed.

"Oh, Annie, thank the goddess you're awake!" she heard Mercedes say as soon as her eyes fluttered open. "You had me so worried!" A worried expression had replaced Mercedes' usual cheerful smile.

"S...sorry?" Annette mumbled, still getting her bearings. "What...happened...?"

"You fainted while we were waiting for the dessert course to start. I got my friend Byleth to carry you here to the nurse's station in Cethleann Hall, and now here we are!"

"Fainted...?" Annette still didn't understand what happened. She had fainted before, and whenever she woke up, she always had at least one or two painful bruises from where she had hit the floor. Gingerly, she felt up and down her arms, but found nothing; she had some back pain, but that was almost certainly from the horrible cot she was resting on.

"It's okay, I made sure you had a soft landing!" Mercedes reassured her.

"Wh...what? How?"

Mercedes motioned to her chest, giving her breasts a little jiggle for emphasis. "You're lucky you fell into these girls and not the countertop!"

Annette's eyes went wide, and she started hyperventilating again. "O-oh! Oh, I'm so sorry, I promise I didn't mean to—"

"Shhh, I know, it's okay," Mercedes replied. She sat quietly while Annette regained her composure, her expression growing increasingly concerned. "Annette, do I make you uncomfortable?" she asked once Annette was breathing normally again.

"Wh-what? No! Definitely not!!" Annette sputtered. After a moment's thought, she added, "Well...maybe sort of, but it's not your fault at all! I'm kinda really high-strung, and you just bring that out in me a bit more, I guess?"

Mercedes nodded. "I see." Her expression lightened a little, but not by much. "Thank you for telling me that, Annette. I'll do my best to avoid upsetting you like that in the future, but if I get it wrong, be a good girl and tell me, okay?"

"No! I mean, that's not what I meant at all!" Annette rushed to clarify. "It's...kind of nice, actually. It just takes some getting used to; I don't usually get that kind of attention."

Just like that, Mercedes' smile was back. Maybe it was wishful thinking, but Annette thought it looked a little warmer, a little more genuine. "I'm so happy to hear that, Annie! Though, I _am_ curious," she said, shifting her posture almost imperceptibly, "about what kind of attention you mean, exactly?"

Something in her the way Mercedes was looking at her made Annette flush bright red. _This is so unfair,_ she pouted. _How does she even_ do _that?_ Desperate to change the topic, she went with the first thought that popped into her head. "Oh! Where's the nurse? Shouldn't there be someone here?"

"You're looking at her!" Mercedes responded proudly, seemingly more than happy to go along with Annette's obvious evasion. "I'm not technically on duty, but I couldn't let a sweet girl like you wake up in the care of some stranger! It would have been just horrible of me."

Annette giggled at that, which made Mercedes giggle, which made Annette giggle even more, and before they knew it they had both dissolved into laughter. Annette didn't even know what was so funny, but if nothing else, it was relaxing, and it seemed like they both needed it.

"How are you feeling now, Annie?" Mercedes asked once their shared giggle fit was over.

"A lot better now, thanks to you!" replied Annette.

"Do you think you can stand up yet?"

"I can try!"

Annette stood up easily at first, but only managed to take a step or two before stumbling. In an instant, Mercedes was at her side, her hand gently but firmly gripping Annette's shoulder to keep her upright.

"Maybe you should wait a little longer before trying again," Mercedes cautioned, her voice full of concern.

"No, I should go home," Annette insisted. "I'd feel awful if I imposed on you any longer."

Mercedes scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous! You couldn't be a bother if you tried."

"Still, I'll feel a lot more comfortable when I'm at home in my own bed instead of on this...thing." Annette gestured to the cot and gave it a good whack with the palm of her hand.

"Fine, then. But if that's how it is, I'm afraid I must insist on walking you home."

"Fiiine," Annette capitulated. She could tell that Mercedes wouldn't back down this time. "My apartment's in the Roselawn complex, just a couple blocks off campus."

"I know just where you mean. Are you ready?" At Annette's nod, Mercedes started helping her out of bed.

They slowly made their way out of the nurse's office and through the building. Annette was walking on her own—she was pretty sure having Mercedes' hand on her waist or shoulder would make it harder to walk rather than easier—and Mercedes was walking right beside her, ready to catch her if it looked like she was about to fall.

Once they were outside, Annette gasped: it was dark out, and looked like it had been for some time. "How long were you in there with me?" she asked, guilt creeping up on her.

"Not too long," Mercedes evaded. 

Other than a noticeable trembling in her hands, Annette didn't move. _She lost her whole afternoon just because I'm too much of a disaster..._

Mercedes turned to face her. "Annie. Look at me."

Annette slowly complied, avoiding eye contact.

"You didn't do anything wrong, and I'm not upset with you," Mercedes began her voice unmistakably stern. "I work at the nurse's office because I _want_ to help people. I stayed with you because I wanted to help you. I'm walking you home because I still want to help you. Okay?"

Annette nodded.

Mercedes held her gaze for a moment, then finally smiled. "And besides," she continued more cheerfully, "we're friends now, and friends don't abandon each other when they need help!"

"W-we're friends?"

"Of course we are, silly! As long as you want to be, of course."

"But...you're my teacher. And my TA," Annette pointed out.

"And you're my little sous-chef. That doesn't mean we can't be friends!"

"Hey, wait a second," Annette objected, "how come I'm the sous-chef? Aren't we equal partners? How does that even work?"

Mercedes shrugged. "I missed class, so I wouldn't know. You just seem like the sous-chef type to me!" Her eyes sparkled in a way Annette was starting to realize meant Mercedes was teasing her.

"Hey!" she pouted, drawing a giggle from Mercedes.

"If you don't believe me, I'll just have to bake something for you next week!"

"I-I couldn't possibly...I mean, you don't have to just for me!" Annette flailed.

"Hmm..." Mercedes put her hand to her chin and seemed to ponder for a moment. When she reached a conclusion, her eyes lit up. "Okay, I won't!" she said, smiling brightly.

 _Oh...I didn't expect her to actually...oh well. I guess I can't ask her to anyway when I just asked her not to._ They walked in silence until Annette remembered a question she had been meaning to ask. "So, Mercedes...what are you studying, exactly? You do so many things!"

"Lots of stuff!" For a moment, Annette thought this was all she was going to get, but Mercedes' eyes twinkled and she continued. "I've already studied to be a nurse, but after a few years of that, I realized my true passion was for teaching, so...here I am!" She spread her arms out wide with a flourish.

Annette frowned. "Wait, then why—"

"Oh look, we're here already!" Mercedes said, and sure enough, there was Annette's apartment building right in front of them. "Do you need me to walk you up to your room, too?"

Any ideas of pressing for more information flew out of Annette's mind; if Lysithea saw her together with Mercedes, she would never live it down. "N-no, that's fine!" she stammered. "Thank you so much for everything!" She flashed Mercedes a smile and went inside as quickly as she could safely manage.

Back in her apartment, she collapsed on the couch and sighed.

"You're back late," Lysithea greeted her, peeking over a different, thicker textbook this time. "Run into your hot teacher on the way back?"

Annette's eyes widened in shock. "H-how did you know?!" she asked, taken aback.

Lysithea snapped the book shut and gave Annette her full attention, steepling her fingers and smiling menacingly. "I didn't. Now, tell me _everything._ "

"It wasn't like that!" Annette insisted.

Lysithea would not be deterred. "Then what _was_ it like?"

Annette relayed the evening's events back to Lysithea, whose grin grew wider with every additional detail she shared.

_I'm doomed...I'm so doomed..._

"So, let me get this gay," Lysithea said once Annette finished. "You're partnered up in your cooking class, she took care of you after her hug gave you a panic attack, and you got to learn more about her on your way home?"

Annette swallowed and nodded.

"I'm happy for you finding a nice crush, and she _sounds_ sweet, but just in case...did she hurt you? Do I need to fight her? Because I absolutely will, and I'm scrappy." Lysithea cracked her knuckles, which would have maybe been menacing on someone with more physical presence than Lysithea.

"N-no!" Annette exclaimed.

"You sure? I'm not afraid to bite, if it comes to that. I can fight dirty." Lysithea snapped her teeth for emphasis.

Annette laughed. She knew Lysithea was playing it up now that she knew Mercedes wasn't a danger, but she also knew that her best friend was deadly serious. "The panic attack wasn't her fault, and she took care of me afterward. She's fine, Lys, I promise."

"Oh, I see. _You_ want to bite her, not me. Gotcha." Lysithea winked and leered at Annette.

"What?! No!"

"Right, right, I forgot; you want _her_ to bite _you_. My bad."

Annette's face flushing red was all the confirmation Lysithea needed. She cackled at her flustered roommate. Done with the teasing, her face softened. "Hey, Annie. I'm for real happy for you. I hope this works out."

"Thanks...so do I." Annette sighed dreamily. "She's just...she's so cool and smart, and she's really nice to me! And she gives me a lot of attention, and I don't know how to handle it yet! I was handling it fine until she hugged me, but then I just..." She blushed at the memory. "She's so s-soft, and squishy, and w-warm..."

Lysithea smiled and giggled at Annette's gushing. "I'm really glad," she said. "You know if anything does happen, I'm here for you, right? No matter what."

"Thanks, Lys. You're the best," Annette said, then yawned. "Eheheh...I guess it's been kind of a long day for me. I'm gonna try to sleep." She gave Lysithea a quick hug, then went to get ready for bed. It was earlier than she usually went to sleep, but she could hardly keep her eyes open.

When she was done, she flopped into bed with a sigh. This was the worst-case scenario, she realized: not only was Mercedes the hottest woman Annette had ever laid eyes on; she was also _fascinating_. Not to mention considerate. And enigmatic. And frustratingly good at pushing her buttons.

She buried her face in her pillow and groaned. _Why do things have to be so flipping complicated?!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> byleth is in the dessert course to learn more about cooking fish. edelgard has repeatedly told her that they probably won't be covering fish in a course about desserts. byleth was undeterred.
> 
> shamir teaches the dessert course, and on her first day she gives a very stern lecture about keeping metal utensils away from the nonstick stuff. nobody has ever defied her on this.


	4. Chapter 4

The weekend flew by, and before Annette knew it, Monday rolled around again and saw her on her way to philosophy seminar. "Gonna say hello to Mercie~ and learn about philosophy~ Learning really is the best~ Gotta not stare at her—"

"Hey Sleeping Beauty, how's it hanging?"

Annette yelped and turned to see Claude grinning back at her. _Oh great_ , she thought, _I hope he didn't hear any of that._ "H-hey, Claude! I'm great! Just peachy! How are you!"

"Oh, you know me, still hanging in there," he responded noncommittally. "I hear you had quite the adventure on Friday. I guess you bounced back pretty fast?"

"Yeah, it wasn't a big deal...wait, how did you even hear about that?"

Claude winked. "I have my sources. Though I thought they were in the dessert course on Fridays, not motorboating lessons."

"No, that's right," Annette said, confused. _How did he get those mixed up? I've never even_ seen _a motor boat in person._

Claude facepalmed. "That's not—you know what, never mind. Now, about that philosophy reading..."

They made small talk the rest of the way to class, chatting about their weekends, the material they were about to cover in class, and anything else that came up, which thankfully didn't include anything else that would embarrass Annette.

But just before they reached their classroom, Claude leaned in and whispered to her, "You might want to keep your mind off _mating_ when you're coming up with those lyrics, Sleeping Beauty. I'm not the only one with ears, you know." Annette stopped in her tracks, but he sauntered on ahead like he hadn't said anything. _Great, just great._

Annette closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. _Just because he heard me doesn't mean anyone else did. Even if he heard me last week_ and _this week. And if he tells anyone, I'll just ask Lysithea to...politely and nonviolently discourage him from spreading it any further. Yes._ She nodded to herself and walked into the classroom.

She wasn't as early this time as she had been a week ago, and most of her classmates were already present in the same spots they had chosen last week. As she went to her front-and-center desk, Edelgard noticed her and raised a hand in greeting.

"Hello, Annette. I don't believe we've been formally introduced: I'm Edelgard Hresvelg."

Annette waved back. "Yeah, I remember you! You're also in the dessert course with your girlfriend, right?"

Edelgard's aloof, almost frosty demeanor shattered upon hearing the world 'girlfriend', and her cheeks went crimson. "H-how did you—I mean, that's not—I mean...yes, I am indeed in the dessert course with Byleth, and we are...romantically involved. But I've hardly told anyone about that." The scary goth woman behind Edelgard looked Annette in the eyes and slowly drew a finger across her neck.

Annette swallowed nervously. "O-oh, um, I'm Lysithea's roommate! You're cousins, right? She mentioned it the other day when I was talking to her about...um, personal stuff." The woman behind Edelgard nodded her head and leaned back in her chair. She looked less likely to commit violence in the next five minutes, but she was still glaring.

"I see," said Edelgard, her composure returning. "Lyssie is indeed my cousin. I do believe she mentioned something about a roommate...ah, yes, that must make you Annie."

"Yeppers, that's me!" Annette beamed. "You can call me Annie, too, if you want." _Though I think Lysithea would kill me if I ever called her Lyssie, best friends or not._

"Thank you, Annie. I hope you are feeling well? You gave us all quite the scare on Friday."

"Yep! Mercedes took great care of me!"

"That's a relief," Edelgard said with a nod. "I wonder why Lyssie didn't mention you to me at all..." Her brow scrunched up in thought.

"You know, she didn't mention you to me, either! I mean, she was always talking about her cousin El, but she never even mentioned—"

They were interrupted by Mercedes walking in and greeting the class. "Good morning, everyone!" she said with her usual brightness and cheer. In her arms was a large platter covered in aluminum foil, which she put down on an empty desk at the front of the room. "It's the first class of the week, so I thought I'd bring some snackies with me in case any of you have a case of the Mondays!" She pulled off the foil covering to reveal layer upon layer of shortbread cookies, each dotted with flecks of lemon zest and lavender.

Annette's mouth started watering, and it wasn't even because of the tiny glimpse of cleavage visible at the neckline of Mercedes' dress.

Well, not _just_ because of that, at least.

When Mercedes invited everyone to get some cookies before she started class, Annette grabbed two and went quickly back to her seat. All through class, she nibbled on the cookies; something about them, whether it was the flavor or the mere fact of having something to fiddle with while she listened & took notes, helped keep her focused on learning instead of her increasingly-awkward crush, and before she knew it, class was over.

On her way out, she heard Mercedes call to her. "How were the cookies, Annie?"

"They were incredible!" she responded enthusiastically.

"I'm so glad! I made them with you in mind, you know."

"M-me? Really?" Annette felt the blood rush to her face as she blushed. "Didn't you say you wouldn't?"

"I said I wouldn't make them 'just for you'," Mercedes pointed out with a sly grin. "I didn't say anything about not making them at all; these were for the whole class!"

Annette laughed. "You got me there, Mercie! Oh—um—frosting, I meant Mercedes, sorry!"

Mercedes' eyes sparkled. "You can call me Mercie if you want to! Just don't give anyone else any ideas, okay?"

"O-okay!"

As they parted ways, Annette felt a surge of hope in her chest. Mercedes let her call her by a nickname! It made her feel...special.

_A girl could get used to this..._


	5. Chapter 5

Chef Shamir Nevrand was something of an enigma on campus. A former student of Garreg Mach University, she was the head chef for Thunderbrand's, a hipster-y gastropub in the trendy area a mile or two from campus. Nobody knew much else about her, but her skill spoke for itself, and somehow her terse, hands-on teaching style was both effective and popular.

"...and remember not to overmix your batter. To work, everyone," she instructed the class. After leaving everyone to their own devices for a few minutes, she started to pace around the room and offer feedback.

"Hresvelg, where did you even find that cleaver? Eisner, keep a closer eye on her."

"Molinaro, Ubert, keep up the good work."

"Blaiddyd, what are you—no! Twigs and dandelions are _not_ acceptable spices!"

"Is that a—Pinelli! What part of 'remember not to overmix your batter' screamed 'dump everything in a blender' to you? Congratulations, you've made sweetened glue."

"What did I just say, Eisner? Hresvelg, just...start over. And if I see you use a quarter cup of nutmeg in _anything_ again, I'm billing you when I have to buy more."

"No, I don't have any bourbon you can add, Arnault. Save your flirting for Macneary."

"Fraldarius! That knife is for chopping, not for forcing your partner to throw out those weeds."

"Don't eat uncooked flour, Dominic. Unless you _want_ Martritz to have to take care of you again."

Annette blushed. "S-sorry, chef! I just wanted to see if it needed more cinnamon."

"You don't need a serving spoon for just a taste test. And..." Shamir leaned over the bowl and sniffed, "...you've added too much cinnamon already. Keep that in mind next week." She walked away, leaving Annette to pout at her back.

Mercedes giggled at Annette's reaction. "It's okay, Annie! I'm sure they'll still be delicious."

Apparently Shamir overheard, because she turned back around. "They'll be good, but you should always strive to be better. As soon as you get complacent, you're as good as dead." When the pair just stared back at her in shock, she coughed awkwardly into her hand. "...it's a cutthroat world out there," she explained, then quickly walked away to check on a different pair's progress.

Annette counted herself lucky she hadn't missed much the previous week. According to Edelgard, most of the class had been spent going over where to find ingredients and anything else they might need to bake, and they wrapped up by making chocolate chip cookies. She was a little sad to have missed out on cookies, of course, and there was always more to learn about making even such a simple-seeming food, but with Edelgard and Byleth to show them around, they were up to speed in no time.

Once everyone was waiting on their cakes to finish baking, Shamir returned to the front of the class and cleared her throat. "While you're all sitting around, I have an announcement. Most classes have midterms, and this one is no exception." A collective groan rose from the class, but she raised her hand and silenced it. "In a month and a half, we will be hosting a get-together. Each of you may invite one person. You and your partner will decide on three different desserts to bake. At the midterm, each team will set up a table where your classmates and their guests will sample them. Dominic, do you have a question?"

Annette nodded and lowered her hand. "How will grades be determined?" She wasn't in this class for the academic prestige, but a grade was a grade, after all.

"There will be feedback forms on each of your tables. Everyone who tries one of your desserts will leave feedback on how it tasted, as well as a grade between zero and five. I reserve the right to adjust the results based on my own judgment, but the feedback from your peers will form the basis of your grades."

Annette's eyes sparkled. "This is so cool!" She turned to Mercedes, suddenly nervous. "Are you, um...do you have anyone you want to invite?"

For a moment, Mercedes' smile faltered, but she recovered before Annette could ask what was wrong. "Nope! I hope whoever you bring can eat enough for two!"

"Don't worry; Lys may be tiny, but she can pack away as many sweets as someone twice her size!" Annette couldn't help but laugh a little at the thought of her best friend running around like...well, like a kid in a candy store. "Oh, I can't wait to tell her! She's gonna be _so_ excited."

Mercedes smiled warmly, her eyes crinkling up at the corners. Annette wished she could take a picture. _Oh well. Guess I'll just have to make her smile like that more!_

* * *

"Guess who's got good news~!" Annette sang as she threw open the door to her apartment.

"Let me guess," Lysithea deadpanned, "you ditched class and made out with Hot Teacher for two hours in the nurse's office."

Annette's cheeks caught fire at the teasing. "N-no! There's—"

"Oh, so you made out in the classroom in front of everyone for two hours? Damn, I didn't know she was so freaky!"

"She's not!! W-well, I don't think she is, at least...but that's because we haven't talked about it!"

Lysithea waggled her finger in mock disapproval. "Annie, you should know that communication is very important when engaging in intimacy with a partner. You should always talk about these things first."

It felt like steam was about to start coming out of Annette's ears. "That's—we're not—I mean—what do you even know about making out? You don't even enjoy it!"

Too late, Annette realized her mistake as Lysithea's mouth twisted into a triumphant grin. "And that, dear Annie, is exactly why I am qualified to lecture you: I am an unbiased third party." She crossed her arms and fixed her flustered friend with a cool gaze.

"Ughhh, I just handed you that one, didn't I?" Annette groaned. Lysithea just nodded smugly. "But it doesn't matter, because none of that actually happened!"

"Sure, sure, whatever you say. So, what's this news?"

"Oh right, that!" Annette had forgotten all about it during the relentless onslaught of teasing. "The dessert course has a midterm!"

"I know you're a super nerd, but getting this hyped up over a midterm is a lot even for you."

"Hey! If I'm a super nerd, then you're a _turbo_ nerd!" Annette shot back and stuck her tongue out. "But this isn't just any midterm—it's like, a massive dessert potluck party, and we can each invite someone to it! I was _going_ to ask you, but if you're going to be so mean to me I might have to find someone else..."

Lysithea's expression became deadly serious. "Annette," she said, her voice icy, "need I remind you that I can and will put spiders in your bed?"

"Well, looks like I have no choice but to invite you!" Annette said, smiling. "And since I guess you'll probably also put spiders in my bed if I don't share this with you, here." She pulled a box out of her bag and held it out to Lysithea. She opened it reverently, revealing a leftover piece of cake from class. Her eyes widened, and without thinking twice she grabbed it and took a huge bite.

"Mmf mmm!" she said, which Annette knew translated to "Thank you!"


	6. Chapter 6

Once Annette got into the swing of things, the semester flew past in a flurry of learning, baking, and yearning. Every Monday morning, as well as the occasional Thursday, Mercedes would bring a different type of baked good for the class to try. At Marianne's request there would sometimes be separate vegan and non-vegan versions, but more often than not there would just be one dessert that everyone could eat. She even brought vegan meringue cookies to class once that tasted just like the real thing!

Annette's other classes were all going smoothly. That wasn't to say that she always understood everything right away; rather, she knew her limits, and she was comfortable asking for help when she needed to. This had the pleasant side-effect of giving her more time with Mercedes during office hours for her math class, and over the next few weeks, the two got to know each other better.

"Thanks for all the help, Mercie!" said Annette gratefully after Mercedes helped her with a particularly baffling piece of algebraic lore.

"You know, Annie," Mercedes said with a familiar glint in her eye, "I said you could call me 'Mercie', but I just remembered that on the first day of class, I promised to be merciless to anyone who called me that."

"Y-you did? Oh, right, you d-did." Annette suddenly felt like a mouse being toyed with by a cat: a familiar feeling by now. She loved it.

"I guess I'll just have to think of something," Mercedes said with a shrug. "After all, you wouldn't want me to go back on my word, would you?" She fake-pouted and leaned forward just enough to make Annette blush again, both at the insinuation and at the relatively low cut of her dress. _I definitely wouldn't mind if she...ack! Nope! Nope nope nope, not thinking about that!_

Annette was very glad there was no one else at office hours. Though, now that she thought about it... "Oh no, Mercie, didn't office hours end an hour and a half ago?"

"They sure did!" Mercedes didn't look surprised. "I don't mind if I get to spend the extra time with you though, Annie." She giggled when Annette gaped at her. "Want me to walk you home?"

Annette nodded, and they set off together, walking just barely far enough apart to avoid their hands brushing together.

* * *

"Everything here looks so delicious! What do you recommend, Annie?"

"I usually get the stuffed french toast, but their omelets are good, too, if you want something savory."

"Stuffed french toast sounds wonderful! Thanks, Annie!"

"Eheheh...no problem, Mercie!"

With just two weeks left until the dessert course midterm, Annette and Mercedes decided to meet up on a weekend to plan their menu. Annette suggested her usual haunt, the Nabatea Diner, and Mercedes enthusiastically accepted.

After deciding on their orders, they closed their menus and sat in awkward silence for a while. Usually they had more pressing schoolwork as an easy excuse to get a conversation going, but in such a casual setting, they were both having trouble figuring out what to say first.

The silence was eventually broken not by either one of them, but by their server coming over to take their orders. "Hello, Annie! Are you both ready to order?" Flayn was the owner's daughter and Annette's brunch group's regular server on Saturday mornings; apparently she also worked Sundays, and Annette was happy to see the familiar face.

"I think so! Mercie, are you ready?" Mercedes nodded. "Yay! I'll have the usual!"

"And I'll have the stuffed french toast. It comes highly recommended!" Mercedes winked at Annette, who felt herself blush lightly.

"Okay, that will be two stuffed french toasts, correct?" asked Flayn. They confirmed, and she smiled sweetly. "It is so nice to see you bring a date here, Annie! I do not recall ever seeing you here with someone one-on-one like this before."

Annette's blush deepened. "Wh-what? A d-d-date?! No, we're just, you see..." She tried to correct Flayn, but the waitress was already gone.

"Aww, don't be so shy, _sweetie_ ," Mercedes teased, giggling.

Annette was glad she was already blushing as much as she possibly could; otherwise, she was sure her reaction to being called 'sweetie', even jokingly, would have easily given away her crush. "Th-that's! I mean! Not that I think you'd be a bad girlfriend! N-not that I've thought about that or anything!!" _I should probably just shush..._

Mercedes reached out to gently pat the back of her hand. "Don't worry, Annie, I'm only teasing. Now, how about we try to figure out what to make for the midterm?" She pulled out a pen and paper from her bag and put her reading glasses on.

"Y-yeah, let's do that!" Annette agreed, happy for the topic change. "What about those shortbread cookies you made a while ago? Those were amazing!"

"I'm so glad you liked them!" Mercedes' eyes sparkled with joy, and she happily added shortbread cookies to the list. "How about you? Do you have any signature desserts?"

Annette thought for a moment. "I don't know if it's my signature dessert or anything, but Lys always loves it when I make strawberry shortcake. Does that sound okay?"

"That sounds perfect!" exclaimed Mercedes, writing excitedly.

"Great, that's two down!" Annette scratched her head, thinking. "For the third one, it would be nice if it were something we could work on together...do you have any ideas?"

Mercedes thought quietly for a few moments. "When I was younger, my baby brother and I would make these sweet walnut rolls together all the time. They aren't difficult, but there's a lot that you can do with two people to speed the process up, and I think you'd love them."

"Hold on, you have a little brother?" Annette leaned toward Mercedes, her eyes shining. "I didn't expect to learn some secret Mercie lore today! Tell me everything!"

The smile disappeared from Mercedes' face. She looked away from Annette and down at the table, almost bashfully. "Oh..." she said quietly. "I did, yes." She opened her mouth as if to say something else, then seemed to think better of it.

"I'm so sorry, I had no idea," said Annette. "If you ever want to talk about it..."

"That's very sweet of you to offer, Annie," Mercedes replied, but made no move to open up any more.

Annette offered her hand to Mercedes across the table. Mercedes hesitated briefly, but eventually accepted, letting Annette give her hand a squeeze. "I'm sorry, Mercie," she apologized again. "I would love to make them with you, if you're comfortable with it."

"I think that would be nice, yes," said Mercedes. She smiled; not her usual cheerful smile, but a soft, melancholy smile that made Annette want to reach out and brush her cheek with her hand, and lean in slowly, and— 

"Annie? Are you okay?"

Suddenly Annette realized that she was gazing into Mercedes' eyes, her free hand already halfway to the other woman's face. "Sorry! Yes! I'm fine," she said, and jolted upright, yanking both of her hands away and folding them safely in her lap. "I was just...um, I'm excited to bake with you! It's going to be so much fun!" _Whew. Nice save, me._

Her awkwardness seemed to be just the thing Mercedes needed to get out of her brief funk: she giggled at Annette and had her usual cheery smile back on her face in no time. Annette couldn't help but think that smile looked a little hollow now that she had seen her with her guard down. And come to think of it, this wasn't the first time she saw her mask slip, was it?

 _What could have happened that she doesn't want to talk about?_ she wondered, and though they happily bantered through the rest of the meal and beyond until they parted ways, she couldn't shake the thought from her mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chickpea water, also known as 'aquafaba' is **fucked up awesome**. just google aquafaba meringues, or watch the basics with babish episode on chickpeas (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfzKfD_WuDM).
> 
> bonus points: here's a vegan aquafaba pancake recipe! it's incredible! we make it all the time. it's been the inspiration for at least one of our other fics on here >_> https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2016/04/vegan-aquafaba-pancake-recipe.html
> 
> the "walnut rolls" or w/e here are actually kifli cookies (distinct from kifli, which is apparently a bread similar-ish to a croissant, which we learned when writing this fic???), an apparently hungarian dessert that is pretty much indistinguishable from rugelach. our grandmother & aunt used to make them for us ALL the time, and so we have a ton of fond memories surrounding them. if you want to try making them yourselves, we've used this recipe before: https://theredpaintedcottage.com/hungarian-kifli-cookies-no-place-like-home/ and liked it a lot!


	7. Chapter 7

A week before the dessert course midterm, Annette was skipping happily down the hall when she saw Mercedes talking to a much taller woman with bright green hair. She didn't mean to eavesdrop, but she couldn't help but overhear their conversation as she drew closer.

"...you need to pick up your slack," the woman she didn't recognize was saying, her voice harsh. "You're letting down your students, your classmates, your professors, and your family. Be better or—"

"Hey! Don't talk to her like that!" Annette cut in, rushing the rest of the way to Mercedes' side. She didn't know what possessed her, but she felt a strong urge to protect Mercedes from this woman—probably her boss, from the sound of it—who was belittling her and her accomplishments. "She's doing her best, and I've never had a better teacher _or_ TA than her! So just shut the f...the funko pop up!"

Both women turned to look at her after her outburst. The green-haired woman was glowering at her; Mercedes just looked lost.

"Annie, that's enou—" Mercedes started.

Annette cut in again. "No, it's not!" she shouted. "You're amazing! You've never let me down, not once, and I know everyone else would agree! Why are you letting her walk all over you?"

"I am not 'walking all over' anyone, _child_ ," the green-haired woman sneered. "Perhaps you do not recognize me. I am Rhea Seiros, acting president of this fine institution. I am merely doing my job here by reminding Ms. Martritz that she _ought_ to be doing hers. You should learn to guard your mouth before leaping to conclusions; I would hate if you forced me to make an example of you. Now, I must take my leave; Ms. Martritz, I trust you will take my words to heart." Without waiting for a reply, she whirled around and stalked off, her heels clacking threateningly against the hard floor.

Annette turned to Mercedes and saw her staring into the distance at nothing in particular, unshed tears in her eyes. "Mercie, are you okay?"

Mercedes jumped, as if Annette had startled her. A dark look passed over her face, and in a small, defeated voice, she said, "You don't know me at all, Annette. Just...stay out of my business." Then she, too, turned and walked away, leaving Annette alone outside the dessert course classroom.

_Oh_ , she thought. _I guess that makes sense. This is how it goes, after all. If I had thought about it at all, I would have seen this coming._ A small part of her wondered why she felt so calm about her crush and baking partner abandoning her like that just before class, but it was drowned out by the rest of her repeating that this was normal, that the people she relied on would just leave out of nowhere and that was just how things should be.

The rest of the afternoon was a blur. She must have done _something_ in class, despite her missing partner, but when she thought about it later she couldn't remember what. Maybe she made a practice round of strawberry shortcake; maybe there was a lesson she followed along with; maybe she stood at her workstation and started off into space for two hours. Regardless, that time was lost to her, and all she could definitively say after the fact was that she eventually made it home.

* * *

"Welcome home!" Lysithea called when she heard Annette get back. After a solid minute without a response, she walked into the living room and saw Annette just standing there, a blank expression on her face. "Annie? You there? Did something happen?"

It wasn't until Lysithea waved her hands in front of Annette's face that the other girl reacted. "Sorry, what did you say?" she asked, blinking her eyes slowly like she just woke up. "I kinda zoned out."

"I said you looked like you were spacing out and asked if something happened today," Lysithea explained. "It seems I was right, so spill."

Annette took a moment to recall what had happened earlier, then shrugged. "It's not a big deal."

"Annie..." Lysithea was worried; she hadn't seen Annette like this in years. Maybe not ever, to this degree. "As soon as you got inside you just stood there silently and didn't move for a whole minute. That sounds like a big deal."

Annette just shrugged again. "Mercie left."

"She _left?_ Left what? Class? The school? The _country?_ " Lysithea had no idea what was going on, but she was getting even more worried about her best friend.

"She just...left."

"Here, let's sit down and we can talk about it," Lysithea said, guiding Annette by the arm over to the couch. She grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around her; she didn't know if it would help, but she had to try _something_. "So, Mercedes left."

Another nod from Annette.

"And how does that, um, make you feel?" Maybe Lysithea could help if she tried to mimic her therapist.

"Why would I feel something? It's just normal, isn't it?"

"What's normal?"

"People leaving."

Ah. That explained it. "Oh, Annie," she cooed as she thought back to their freshman year.

* * *

Every year at Garreg Mach University, there was a weekend set aside for all the freshmen's parents to come visit and see how their children were adapting to college life. Lysithea had dreaded it; she wasn't on the worst terms with her parents, but they had a somewhat contentious relationship when she was in high school that they had only just begun to patch up.

Annette, on the other hand, couldn't stop gushing about her parents and how excited she was to see them. When she heard Lysithea talk about her fears, she hadn't hesitated to offer her own parents as stand-ins for Lysithea's if things got bad. She was full of stories about baking with her parents, about traveling to new and interesting places with her father, about surprising them on their birthdays with breakfast in bed and waking up on her own birthday to the same. Lysithea didn't really understand why someone would want to be close with their parents, or what it could possibly feel like, but it was clear from the way Annette's eyes lit up when talking about her parents that they weren't just her family; they were her best friends, too.

So when Annette got a phone call from her mother a week before the event saying that her father had disappeared, she was distraught. According to her mother, he had left a note three days prior that just read, "I can't stay. I'm sorry," and hadn't been heard from since. In the end, her mother hadn't been able to make it at all, and she spent the whole weekend moping in her room, convinced her father would give her a call soon and it would all turn out to be a misunderstanding.

But as days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months, Lysithea watched the hope slowly drain out of her roommate. After about a month, Annette's mother had received a child support payment with the memo field blank. After they confirmed that it was indeed from her father, Annette tearfully confessed to Lysithea one night that she almost preferred it when she thought he might be dead; now she knew that every day, her father made the conscious decision to stay away from the wife and child he had seemed to love so dearly.

Lysithea didn't know how how much of a long-term impact Annette's father's abandonment had on her; she had a hunch that the panic attacks were related, but as it was difficult for Annette to talk about, she had no way to know for sure. All she could do was offer what support she could, and although Lysithea wasn't great at relating to other people, she seemed to do well enough for Annette to mostly recover, building a deep and cherished friendship in the process.

* * *

Lysithea was certain that Annette's past trauma was at least partly responsible for her current emotional state. "It's not normal for people to suddenly leave the people they're close to," she explained as gently as she could. "There are all sorts of reasons it could happen, but I need more context. Can you tell me what happened just before she left?"

"I saw President Seiros saying mean things to Mercie," Annette explained lifelessly, "so I jumped in and tried to defend her. The president told me who she was and threatened to make an example of me. Then Mercie got angry at me and left."

"Wait, the _university president_ said that?!" Lysithea blurted out. "That's—no, it's not relevant right now, but that's _really_ fucked up. But Annie, it sounds to me like you didn't do anything wrong. Mercedes was probably just overwhelmed. 

Annette's face scrunched up as she tried to understand. "Then why did she leave?"

"I don't know, Annie. Like I said, she was probably overwhelmed and needed some time alone. She's probably not even mad at you any more. Just watch, I bet things will be right back to normal on Monday."

"B-but..." Annette's lip began to tremble, and her voice wavered as she continued, "if it's not my fault, then why would they both...wh-why..."

Finally, Annette's barriers came down, and she collapsed into Lysithea's arms, sobbing. 


	8. Chapter 8

Monday morning, Annette plodded across campus to class, her heart heavy.

She wasn't sure whether or not she was thankful to Lysithea for dragging her back to reality. Nothing was going to get fixed if she spent the next who knows how long in a dissociative haze, but there was something to be said for being numb instead of hurting the way she had been all weekend. As it turned out, getting rid of one trauma response didn't help with any of the other ways her past had wormed its way into her every thought.

Annette knew it wasn't a big deal. She _knew_ it, and she knew Lysithea just wasn't saying so because it obviously wouldn't help. It was just a short exchange, and the most likely outcome was that she and Mercedes would have an awkward conversation the next chance they got, apologize to each other, and get on with their friendship. But _knowing_ something and _believing_ it were two different things, and she couldn't help but think this was another situation like with her father, where someone important to her left without warning, never to return.

Anxiously, she walked into the philosophy seminar classroom and took her seat. She was only a minute or two early, so she didn't have to wait long before Mercedes showed up, went to the front of the room, and put her things down. She looked more or less the same as she always did in class: bright, smiling, and cheerful. For the first time since Friday, Annette felt a glimmer of optimism. _Maybe things are fine after all..._

One thing was out of place, however: Mercedes hadn't produced a tray of sweets yet. "I'm sorry I don't have any treats today, everyone," she explained. "I was feeling unwell over the weekend, and I didn't have a chance to bake yesterday." With that out of the way, she opened up the book she had assigned reading from the previous Thursday and put on her glasses. "Now, if you'll all open your books..."

The class proceeded more or less normally, and as soon as it was over, Mercedes gathered up her things and hurried out of the room. Desperate for a chance to set her mind at ease, Annette followed her into the hall.

"Um, hey, Mercie, got a second?" she asked nervously.

"I don't have time to chat now, Annette," Mercedes replied matter-of-factly. "I have work I must get done." She walked away, leaving Annette staring after her, alone.

_I...I guess she really does hate me now,_ she thought miserably, and rushed off, desperate to get back to the privacy of her apartment before anyone she knew could see her crying.

* * *

The rest of the week was more of the same. Mercedes wasn't exactly hostile toward Annette, but she was treating her like any other student or less-than-casual acquaintance. Maybe worse, as when Annette tried to speak to her before or after the Wednesday or Thursday classes that they shared, she brushed her off with a flimsy excuse. She even canceled her office hours that week, getting another TA to cover for her instead.

By Friday, Annette was despondent. Even Lysithea had given up trying to reassure her; something was clearly going on with Mercedes, and while Lysithea was sure it wasn't her best friend's fault, she had no idea what the real story was. All she could do was try and make sure Annette took care of herself and didn't just self-isolate into oblivion.

Emphasis on 'try'.

"It's just a free baking day, Lys," Annette explained, trying to convince Lysithea that she could ditch the baking course this week. "There's not even a class happening for me to skip; we're just prepping our desserts for tomorrow. I can just stay here and do the same thing."

Lysithea fixed her with a pointed glare. "No, you can't."

"Why not?"

"Because if you do, I'll eat every last thing you bake before you get a chance to bring it to the event tomorrow. You'll fail, and your shitty crush will fail, and I know you don't want either of those things to happen, even if _one_ of you deserves it." Her opinion of Mercedes had noticeably soured after the past week. She paused, then added, "It's her. She deserves it."

Annette glowered. "Fine," she huffed, "you win. But when everything is awkward and terrible, it'll be _your_ fault."

"No, it would be _hers_." Lysithea sneered the last word. "I don't know what her problem is, but you don't deserve this, Annie, and if she's suddenly uncomfortable around you...well, she can just deal with it."

"But..."

"Nope! You need to leave now or you're going to be late! Bye!" Lysithea herded Annette to the door, pushed her outside, then closed, locked, and latched the door. "Just try to talk to her if she shows up!" she shouted. "Which she has to, 'cause you're partners! It'll be fine!"

Annette grumbled, but she made her way to class all the same.

* * *

If Annette had had any lingering doubts, they were now gone: Mercedes was definitely avoiding her.

It was halfway through class and they had barely exchanged more than a few words. Annette tried a cheerful greeting, only to receive a faux-cheery "Hello!" in response. She tried asking a few questions about where to find ingredients and got terse—albeit sufficient—answers. Eventually, she settled into prepping her strawberry shortcakes so that they would be quick to assemble tomorrow.

Unfortunately, she finished her prep with almost a whole hour of class remaining. She couldn't just leave early, but she also didn't have anything to do; her only real option was to ask Mercedes if she could help with anything. Instead of putting herself through that, she went to one of the counters around the edge of the classroom and tried to look busy.

_If I go back over and talk to her, she'll probably just brush me off, and then I really won't have anything to do...but if I don't, it's basically the same, so I might as well try? But what if she was planning on talking to me again eventually and I ruin it by trying to talk to her before she's ready? I think I want to talk to her, even if it's just about how to prepare those walnut rolls she mentioned, so should I try to correct for that bias by_ not _walking over? But that seems like the wrong thing to do, so maybe I_ should _try to talk to her, but I might just be trying to convince myself to do what I want to do instead of what's right..._

"Don't cry into the ingredients. They're unsalted for a reason."

The reprimand jerked Annette out of her rapidly spiraling thoughts. "I'm not crying..." she insisted, rubbing at her eyes only to find that a trickle of tears had indeed escaped and streaked down her face. She turned and saw Shamir fixing her with a cool gaze. _She wears that look just like Mercie wears her smile, doesn't she?_ Annette realized.

"Sorry. Stop adding eye juice to the ingredients," Shamir amended in her typical deadpan.

Annette snorted at the unexpected joke, but the tears kept coming.

"You should talk to her," said Shamir. "Even if she hates you for it, it'll be better than never finding out."

"O-okay..." Annette replied nervously. She was too confused by the taciturn chef's sudden interest in her relationship with Mercedes to do anything but agree. _After all, she looks like she would kill me in my sleep if I didn't do as she said,_ she thought as she trudged over to the workspace she and Mercedes ostensibly shared.

_Okay, Annie. Big breath. You can do this._

"Mercie, we need to talk."

"I'm sorry, but I'm in the middle of—"

Suddenly Annette was sick of being shoved aside and ignored. "Too bad. Hallway. Now." She grabbed Mercedes' wrist and dragged her out of the classroom, walking far enough down the hall to hopefully get some privacy before turning around to face her. "What is your _problem?_ " she demanded, tears starting to fall down her face. "Am I really that awful? What's wrong? Just _tell me!_ "

Mercedes stared, then shook her head. "I told you, you don't know me at all. You don't want to. You _shouldn't_ want to."

"Yes I do!" Annette shouted. "You don't get to decide that for me! If you still want me out of your life, then I'll accept that, but at least give me some closure so I don't have to live through being abandoned like that again!!"

Mercedes' eyes widened in shock. She mouthed the word 'again' and thought for a moment. "I'm so sorry, Annie," she said sadly. "I had no idea..."

All of Annette's self-pity must have somehow turned into righteous anger, because she kept going. "Of course you had no idea! We both have no idea what the other's going through because you never bothered letting us get close enough to talk about that sort of thing!"

"Oh, Annie..." Mercedes sighed, "I'm not the person you seem to think I am. I've seen the way you look at me, and it feels wonderful, but..." She looked at Annette and saw the tears in her eyes, the splotchy red marks on her face that showed how much she'd been crying even before this, and the excuse died on her lips. "I'm just no good, Annie," she said and shook her head, smiling sadly.

"That's not true!" Annette insisted. "But if you really believe that, tell me _why_ so I can understand before you...before you l-leave."

Mercedes steadied herself with a deep breath before she continued. "I'm a failure, Annie. I've jumped around from grad program to grad program ever since I finished undergrad and I still don't know what I'm doing with my life. Every time I think I'm interested in something, it takes less than a year for me to be sick of it. I've been in three different schools and almost a dozen different programs and I'm still lost. I barely know how to make new friends any more, and even when I do, I just leave and never talk to them again, and I don't want any of that to happen...with you...too..." She tapered off as she realized exactly what she was saying, and what she had already done.

Annette put her hands on her hips and glared at Mercedes. "Well, you already made it happen, so there shouldn't be anything else for you to be afraid of, huh?"

"Y-yes...I guess you're right," said Mercedes, and to both of their surprise, she let out a short giggle, the ghost of a smile appearing on her lips for a brief moment before vanishing again. "Although, I don't think it's very good of me to have fallen for a former student, either..."

"F...former?" _Oh no oh no oh no I misunderstood_ everything, _oh biscuits, I can't believe I'm so stupid, she's not interested in me at all, she's interested in someone else._ "I'm sorry, I thought—"

"I mean you, Annie," said Mercedes when she noticed the distraught look on Annette's face. "I fell for you."

"But...I'm not your former student, am I?" Annette asked, her panic immediately finding a new problem to latch on to. "Oh no, did the dean expel me or something? I can't be expelled, I'm almost—"

"No, you're fine!" Mercedes interrupted. "It's just that...I sent in my resignation to Dean Seiros on Monday. This was my last week of being a teacher or a teaching assistant."

Annette's jaw dropped in shock. "What?! Why?! You were such a good teacher! I learned so much from you!"

Mercedes shook her head. "Outside of the philosophy seminar, you might be the only one," she said sadly. "You were so fun to be around and help out; before I knew it, I had started neglecting everyone else."

"No! Bad! Don't do that!" Annette scolded, hands on her hips.

"It's not just that, don't worry!" Mercedes added quickly. "I'm actually kind of a ditz, too! But all that's why the dean was upset with me last week; enough students had filed complaints that it got escalated all the way to her."

"So...what will you do?"

"I'm still a grad student, so I'll continue my studies, at least for now," Mercedes explained, "but for money, a certain someone told me I have some real talent and even offered me a job at Thunderbrand's. I could do that."

Annette's eyes opened wide. "You mean..."

"Mhm!" Mercedes hummed. "Chef Nevrand's a big softie once you get to know her! I didn't expect it when I signed up for the course, and I was planning to turn it down, but...well, if I'm already giving new things a chance, it's an opportunity to do something I really love and maybe even make a living out of it." She smiled warmly at Annette for the first time in over a week.

Annette's heart suddenly felt full almost to bursting. "Can I, um...I mean, do you want a hug? Maybe?" she asked, her voice hopeful. Mercedes nodded, so she wrapped her friend—maybe more-than-friend?—in the tightest hug she could, this time savoring the feel of the other woman's soft, plush curves squishing into her. "I'm so happy for you, Mercie," she whispered. "Thank you for giving yourself a chance."

When they finally pulled out of the hug, Mercedes had a gleam in her eyes that made Annette squirm. "You know, speaking of doing things I'm quite fond of..." she whispered lasciviously.

"I-I, um, do you mean...y-you aren't my teacher any more, right?"

"Not unless you want me to be," Mercedes said with a wink.

"Um! M-maybe! But first, can I just...c-can I kiss you?"

"Nope!" Mercedes rejected her immediately, but didn't stop leering.

"O-oh! I, um..." she trailed off, confused.

"Shhh, Annie, it's okay. Do you want us to kiss?"

Annette nodded vigorously. "Y-yeah! Obvi—"

Mercedes cut her off by grabbing her shoulders, pinning her against the wall, and kissing her forcefully. Her tongue pushed forward, and the younger woman opened her mouth eagerly for her, moaning with the release of months of pent-up desire. She pulled away before they could get too far into it, but kept Annette pinned firmly in place. "I've wanted to do this since the first time I saw you," she said, her voice a low, husky whisper.

"Then please...don't stop," Annette gasped.

"Good girl. That's exactly what I wanted to hear," Mercedes purred. After a quick nip at Annette's ear, she kissed her again, this time deepening the kiss instead of pulling away. Annette trembled and moaned despite her best efforts to keep quiet, and with every sound, every tremor, Mercedes kissed her a little harder, gripped her shoulders a little more tightly. After what felt like a blissful eternity, Mercedes shoved her knee between Annette's thighs.

Annette immediately opened her legs and started grinding against Mercedes's leg, letting out another long moan. "P-please...more..." she whispered, her thoughts overwhelmed by lust and affection and another emotion she was nowhere near ready to interrogate yet.

They were interrupted by the sound of a throat being loudly cleared. "Class isn't over yet," Shamir warned them, "and while you're here, I expect you to be making dessert, not love." The newly-reunited couple jumped into a more chaste arrangement, and when Annette opened her eyes, she swore she saw the corners of the austere chef's mouth twitch upward for just a moment into a tiny smile.

"Yes, chef!" Mercedes responded, adding a snappy—and entirely unnecessary—salute for good measure. "Just doing a quick taste test! Come on, Annie, let's finish up!" She grabbed Annette's hand and pulled her along back into the classroom; Annette, still dazed from everything that just happened, was all too happy to follow.


	9. Chapter 9

"Hey Lys, I'm home!"

"Welcome back, Annie! How was...oh. Why the fuck is _she_ here."

After class finished, Annette and Mercedes wanted more time together than just a short walk around campus would afford. Knowing that Lysithea would worry if she didn't come home right after class, Annette had invited Mercedes over to her place, leading to an awkward encounter when Mercedes walked through the door after her.

"We, um, patched things up, but had more we wanted to talk about?" Annette ventured.

Lysithea sighed dramatically. "Ugh, fine. But first," she said, fixing Mercedes with a glare that could melt steel, "you: what are your intentions with Annie?"

"To make up for my behavior this last week, and be the best girlfriend I can be, if she'll still have me," Mercedes answered immediately.

Lysithea nodded. "Good. See that you do." She kept her gaze focused on Mercedes. "You probably think I'm going to yell at you again, don't you?"

"Mhm," Mercedes affirmed.

"You've probably said everything I could say to you and far worse to yourself over the last week, haven't you."

Mercedes hesitated, surprised, but nodded again.

Lysithea sighed again. "Just...don't fuck up like this again or I'll fill your office with bees."

Mercedes' eyes lit up. "Oh, I love bees! I've always wanted to raise them and collect their honey myself; Annie, we could use it when we bake together!"

"Er, no, I meant wasps," Lysithea stammered, caught off guard by Mercedes' quick turnaround.

"Wasps are so sweet!" exclaimed Mercedes without missing a beat. "They're so misunderstood; they're actually very sweet, and fill an important ecological—"

"Ugh!" Lysithea huffed. "Spiders, then!"

"My favorites! Did you know that factoid about the average human eating three spiders a year is actually—"

Lysithea threw her hands in the air, defeated. "Fine! Just...don't hurt her again, or I'll make sure you'll regret it."

"I already do," replied Mercedes more seriously. "I'm going to do my best for her, and if I still let her down, I'm sure I'll deserve anything you can come up with."

The conversation seemingly over, Annette and Mercedes started walking toward the bedroom, only to be stopped by Lysithea clearing her throat. "I'm sorry, where did you intend on sleeping tonight, Mercedes?" she asked.

"With me, obviously!" Annette piped up.

"No. No way. Absolutely not." Lysithea shook her head vigorously. "It's my room too, and I know you two will be at it like rabbits if I give you half a chance. You're on the couch tonight, Mercedes. Nothing personal."

Annette stomped her foot and pouted. "But Lyyyyyyyys!!"

"No," said Lysithea, holding firm. "I refuse to be kept up all night by _another_ couple I helped get together. Besides, I've had an exhausting week, and yours has been even worse. We all need a good night's rest for once, especially you two." She looked at Mercedes, then added, "I'm not just gonna kick you out, even if you did treat my best friend like ass. Sleeping on the shitty couch can be your penance."

Mercedes nodded. "I'll be fine on the couch, Annie, and we can head over early to finish everything and bring it to the tent. Does that sound good?"

"Fiiiiine," Annette conceded, still pouting. But she was too tired to disagree, and the moment she got into bed, she fell into a deep, restful sleep.

* * *

The next morning saw Annette walking slightly behind Mercedes and staring intently at her hand.

They were more than halfway from her apartment to the dessert course classroom where they were going to finish up their desserts before bringing them to the large tent on the lawn outside. The weather was beautiful. The desserts would be perfect. And Annette _really_ wanted to hold Mercedes' hand.

_I can do it, right? I mean, we're sorta together, so it would probably be fine...but we haven't talked about it, so what if she doesn't want to yet? Or maybe it would be too clingy of me? Oh no, what if she has a condition that makes her palms sweat a lot and she's self-conscious about it? I probably shouldn't—_

"Oof!" Annette bumped into something soft. She took a step back and saw that Mercedes had turned around and stopped in front of her, a fond smile on her face.

Mercedes reached her hand out and brushed gently against Annette's. "May I?" she asked. At Annette's excited nod, she giggled and interlaced their fingers together, then turned back around and kept walking, this time side-by-side.

After a few steps, Annette reached her other hand across to hold on to Mercedes' arm and leaned her head on her shoulder. _This is so nice! This is the best! It's like...eating warm brownies with ice cream and a big mug of hot cocoa._

"Mmm, that sounds lovely," Mercedes said dreamily. "Let's see...for me, it's like drinking fruit tea and snacking on cookies. Maybe some of those shortbread cookies I made..."

"I didn't mean to say that out loud, but...that sounds really nice," Annette said. She knew she should feel self-conscious about having accidentally blurting out her inner monologue, but instead, she felt at peace. It was a welcome change.

Mercedes gave Annette a pat on the head with her free hand. "I'll have to keep that in mind when I ask you on a date," she said, and they both smiled happily.

The rest of the walk was so cozy that Annette didn't realize they had reached the classroom until Mercedes let go of her hand and planted a small kiss on her forehead. "Want to learn how to make those walnut rolls?"

"Yeah!"

Mercedes instructed Annette to preheat the oven and dust the countertop with powdered sugar while she went to fetch the dough and filling she had already prepared. When she got back, she explained the process: she would roll the dough out and cut it into wedges, giving Annette half of them. For each wedge, they would put a drop of filling in its center, roll it up, and put it on the baking sheet, working in parallel. It was the sort of easy, rote work that would be dull to do alone but was surprisingly fulfilling to do with someone; before long, Annie felt the same sense of contentment that she had on the walk over.

While they worked, Mercedes talked about herself. "I used to make these all the time with my baby brother," she explained. "He had such a sweet tooth, so as soon as we were old enough, our mother taught us how to make all sorts of treats. Out of all of them, though, these were our favorites."

The first baking sheet of cookies filled up, so they put it in the oven and started on the next. "When mother died, those recipes became our way of keeping her memory alive," she continued. "We tried to include father, too, but after her death, he...changed. For the worse." She took a shaky breath to collect herself.

Annette's hands were sticky from the pastry rolling, so she couldn't offer a hug or even squeeze her hand; instead she settled for resting her head on Mercedes' shoulder. "You don't have to tell me all of this right now, Mercie," she reminded her gently. "We have plenty of time ahead of us."

Mercedes returned the gesture, leaning her head to the side to rest it against Annette's. "I know, but it's important. I haven't told anyone about this before, and I want to tell you now before I can chicken out."

"Not even your therapist?"

"I...don't have one." Mercedes shrugged. "I've never stayed in one place long enough."

"That's no excuse!" Annette huffed. "As soon as I get home, I'm emailing my therapist to ask if they can recommend anyone for you to see."

"You see a therapist?"

"Uh, yeah, who doesn't these days? And, well...I've got some stuff from my past that I'm still working through, too." Annette paused, then decided to continue, if only to give Mercedes a breather. "My dad left me and my mom a few years ago. He just...went to work one day and never came home. I still can't think about it too hard or I'll start going in circles, trying to figure out why he would just disappear like that. I thought we were close, but...maybe we weren't. Or maybe that wasn't enough."

"Oh Annie...I'm so sorry."

Annette shrugged. "It's okay; I'm pretty much over it by now." She thought back to the past week and added, "Or at least I thought I was. I guess I've got lots of stuff to talk to my therapist about at my appointment next month..."

They wrapped up the second sheet of cookies in silence and started on the third. After a few more minutes, Mercedes spoke up again. "My father was always busy with his job, but I remember him being kind, before. He always had something nice to say about Emile's and my baking, and whenever he traveled he always brought back the sweetest gifts. With mother gone, though...he was like a completely different person. He spent even less time around the house, and when he was home...it wasn't good."

With the last tray of cookies finished, they washed their hands and sat down. Annette took both of Mercedes' hands in hers and gave them a squeeze, unsure how else to support her while she bared her soul.

This time, it wasn't long before Mercedes resumed her story. "On my first visit home after college, father was even worse than usual. He...hurt me. He would have hurt me even more, but poor Emile came to see what the noise was about, and..." She paused to wipe tears from her eyes. "The next thing I knew, father was on the ground and Emile was standing over him with a terrible look in his eyes and a bloody sports trophy in his hand. He ran away while I was trying to find something to say, and that was..." Tears were flowing freely down her face now, and she finally broke down, unable to keep talking.

Annette pulled Mercedes into her arms and brushed her fingers through her hair, doing her best to provide what comfort she could. They stayed like that until the timer for the last batch of cookies went off; Mercedes perked up at the sound, and with a final sniffle and a wipe of her eyes, she got up and walked over to the oven.

"Thank you for listening to me, Annie," she said once the cookies were safely cooling. "I needed to get that off my chest."

"Thank you for trusting me enough to share that with me," Annette said. She knew how hard it could be; she hadn't really talked to anyone about her father other than her mother, Lysithea, and her therapist, and she imagined the feelings dredged up for Mercedes were at least as bad. "So...what's next?"

"For us or for the cookies?"

"I meant the cookies, but if you want to talk about us, too..."

"Well, I never asked this yesterday, but..." Mercedes glanced around, visibly nervous. "Annie, it would mean the world to me if you wanted to be my girlfriend."

Annette squealed with joy. "Of course, Mercie! I'd love to!" she shouted, then wrapped her arms around Mercedes and hugged her as tightly as she could. 

When they pulled apart, Mercedes had a smile on her face again; it was small, but no less warm for it. "For the cookies, the next part is the reason I wanted your help with them."

"Aww, you mean it wasn't my cute face?" Annette said with a wink, trying to lighten the mood.

Mercedes giggled. "I can see your cute face whenever I want, silly! Covering all these things with powdered sugar is a different story."

"I can give you sugar whenever I want too, you know," Annette shot back, then immediately blushed. "S-sorry, I don't know what's gotten into me, that's probably too much after, y'know, all that..."

"No, it's lovely," Mercedes said, shaking her head. "We've had more than enough heavy conversation to earn some flirting, don't you think?"

Annette couldn't agree more, and the two traded more and more outrageous flirts until the other students started to trickle in, after which they worked together in comfortable silence. Before long, everything was ready, and all that remained was to carry it all outside and see what everyone had to say.

* * *

"Holy shit, Annie, these are amazing!"

"Way to go, Sleeping Beauty! Top marks!"

"I bet Coach Eisner would love these!"

"Excellent. I shall inform my girlfriends that these are free from poison."

"O-oh...are you sure it's okay for me to eat one...?"

"Good work."

"Oh, they're beautiful! I-I mean, they taste great, too, but their presentation is superb!"

"Delicious. I will inform my boyfriends that these are free from poison."

"Th-these would be great to secretly eat in my room! N-not that I would know!!"

"Can I have another to bring back to the acting president? I bet she'd love it!"

"I kinda want the recipe so I can make these for my girlfriend, but they look like sooooo much work...so don't tell her you gave it to me, 'kay?"

"I like these a lot."

"Eat every last one of them!! ...is what I would like to do, but that would be horribly rude of me, so I will refrain."

"I'll make sure I sing your praises to the teacher~"

"Is this recipe from Enbarr? They taste just like the ones my siblings and I would get from the local bakery when I was little."

Their desserts were a hit, much to Annette's relief. Everyone who stopped by left glowing reviews, and a few people even tried to sneak back for seconds only to be turned away.

"Hmph. Some best friend _you_ are," Lysithea said, arms crossed.

"I promise to let you have some whenever Mercie and I bake more," Annette offered.

"Hmm..." Lysithea made a show of pretending to think it over before nodding. "I accept your terms. And speaking of your girlfriend, where is she?"

Annette pointed a few tables over to where Mercedes was happily munching on a donut, oblivious to the filling dripping down her face.

Lysithea smirked. "Think she can eat pussy like that?"

"Lys!!!" Annette squealed, her cheeks burning.

She was saved from further teasing by a shout from behind her. "Lyssie!! Oh I haven't seen you in _ages,_ how are you?" Edelgard ran up and swept Lysithea up in a big hug, spinning her in a full circle before putting her back down. "I can't believe you never introduced me to Annie! How could you even _think_ to neglect your big sis like this!" she said with mock severity.

Lysithea pushed her away and made a gagging noise. "Ugh, this is _exactly_ why! You always baby me!"

Edelgard gasped. "I do not! Now hold still, you've got jam all over your face." She pulled out a handkerchief from her bag and moved toward Lysithea.

"You are impossible!!" Lysithea shouted as she dodged away with what seemed to be a well-practiced motion. "You're not even my sister! You're like, my twelfth cousin, thrice removed!"

"Second cousin," Byleth said to Annette, having suddenly popped up next to her.

"Once removed," added Huberta from Annette's other side.

Annette giggled at the display.

After the two cousins settled down, the five of them—or really the four of them, as Huberta hardly spoke—settled into a lively conversation as more visitors came and sampled the desserts. One visitor in particular, a tall, slender man in a Garreg Mach University polo shirt and a mask that covered half of his face, caught Annette's attention.

"Exquisite," the visitor drawled. "And somehow...nostalgic. Who created these?"

"My girlfriend!" Annette replied, jumping at her first chance to bring up her _girlfriend_ in casual conversation.

"Interesting..." the man said, and walked away without another word.

"Well _that_ was weird," Lysithea said once he was out of earshot.

"Who was that, anyway?" asked Annette.

"That's Jeritza," Byleth said. "He's the new table tennis coach."

"We have a ping-pong team?"

"Table tennis," Byleth repeated. "They're nationally ranked."

Eventually, Mercedes made her way back to the table, making it Annette's turn to walk around and sample her classmates' offerings. As she expected, they were all incredible; the so-called 'midterm' seemed to be more of an excuse to relax and eat sweets than an actual examination. When things finally wrapped up, Lysithea called dibs on the few leftovers that remained, and Annette was happy to oblige.

"I _do_ deserve these for how good I was about only sneaking seconds once or twice," Lysithea said smugly.

"No, you don't," Annette countered, savoring the scandalized look on Lysithea's face before adding, "You deserve them for being the best friend I could possibly ask for."

Lysithea blushed at the praise. "Fine, that too," she admitted. "So, what are you two lovebirds up to this evening?"

"Annie, do you want to come back to my place?" Mercedes asked. "We should give Lysithea some privacy with her leftovers."

Annette snickered. "Yes, that seems for the best, Mercie. Let's do that."

"Ha ha ha," Lysithea deadpanned. "Should I expect you back this evening?"

Annette and Mercedes exchanged a glance, then looked away, blushing.

Lysithea rolled her eyes. "Ugh, yeah, whatever. Have fun doing whatever slimy, messy things you allosexuals do," she said, then started walking back.

"It's no messier than your face after eating all those desserts, _Lyssie,_ " Annette called after her.

"I'm changing the locks when I get back!" Lysithea shouted over her shoulder.

Once she was gone, Annette and Mercedes looked at each other, then blushed again.

"So..." Annette began.

"So..." Mercedes began simultaneously.

They paused, then burst out into a fit of giggles. "Shall we?" asked Mercedes. She gallantly offered Annette her arm. "I'm looking forward to tonight," she said, then leaned so her mouth was directly next to Annette's ear and lowered her voice to a whisper.

"I've been waiting all semester to hear you beg for Mercie."

**Author's Note:**

> reactions, in order, if you're curious (hopefully we didn't mess this up, heh >_>):
> 
> Lysithea  
> Claude  
> Leonie  
> Huberta  
> Marianne  
> Shamir  
> Ignatz  
> Dedue  
> Bernadetta  
> Cyril  
> Hilda  
> Byleth  
> Dimitri  
> Dorothea  
> Edelgard


End file.
